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Free Arabs: Satire, Disobedience, and Disclaimers

By Nabil Echchaibi

…, the same (almost identically the same) way that Muslim clergy, led by Ayatollah Khomeini, appropriated the Iranian revolution of 1977–1979 entirely for itself, far beyond their own fair share. Free Arabs is right to expose religious anti-intellectualism or fight for the rights of atheists in Arab societies, but their defiance would be much more effective if it rose above colonial constructs of secularists versus Muslims or Islamists. Satirizing…

Refusing the Monsters on Maple Street: A First-Person Commentary from the Mass Hysteria at JFK

By Marion Grau

…suddenly rushed in from the direction of the security checkpoint and duty-free shops. Like an enormous breaker at the beach, the crowd threatened to sweep up virtually everybody in the terminal. I was first stunned, then joined others in crouching between the benches. I waited there until an official-looking man in plain clothes told us to empty the terminal. People began running in panic, dropping their belongings as they ran. We went down a sta…

American Jewish Leaders Get Gaza Wrong

By Sarah Posner

…ed today. And so must the Israeli shelling of civilians in Gaza (the death toll there is now at 13). It’s not a war game, or an occasion for the cold, sophomoric tweet of the IDF spokesperson (or the tweet back by the Al Qassam Brigades). Yousef Munayyer provides some history of the numbers from Gaza at Open Zion: For example, in 2011, the projectiles fired by the Israeli military into Gaza have been responsible for the death of 108 Palestinians,…

Francis Visits the Church that John Paul Broke

By Patricia Miller

…umber of marriages within the church has declined by nearly half. Only the number of Catholic funerals has held steady. And while the number of Catholics overall has remained level, that’s largely due to Hispanic migration to the US; some 40 percent of those born Catholic have left the church. But numbers don’t tell the whole story. The church Francis will encounter is fundamentally different in character from the church of John Paul in two import…

Heterosexual Martyrs and Gay Saints: Did AIDS Coverage Clear the Way for LGBT Equality?

By Diane Winston

…fied as AIDS, did not receive ongoing or thorough coverage. By 1982, nearly 800 AIDS cases had been diagnosed. According to one study, infants and children were increasingly infected. Although a threat to the general population was quickly dismissed, the implication was clear: anyone could be infected. The epidemic had exposed social and cultural fault lines that made coverage more than just a medical story. Its initial outbreak in the homosexual…

‘A Slice of Heaven’: Lakota Look to Buy Back Stolen Sacred Lands

By Johnny P. Flynn

…Anaya, Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of Indigenous Peoples for the UN, met with Indians from several states and reservations. He has advocated the return the Black Hills to the Lakota and his full report is due in late 2012. Although Lakota spiritual leaders are careful regarding the details of their continued use of the Black Hills for religious purposes, there is no doubt they visit and still use th…

The Pope, The Chef & Krampus: Merry Yikesmas!

By Peter Manseau

…de this year’s holiday offering from the Travel Channel’s food-porn hit No Reservations such a surprise. Anthony Bourdain, the celebrity chef and bestselling author, as well as the program’s host and guiding intelligence, has put together an hour of television that is at once a masterpiece of the “Culinary Journey Through Our Grand Traditions” genre of holiday specials, and a spoof of the same. The show pulls you along like a fizzy dinner party ch…

More Mixed Signals from Pope Francis; Church of England Wrestles with Rifts; Faith Groups Lobby Pro & Con on Irish Referendum; Global LGBT Recap

By Peter Montgomery

…artners in Israel,” notes the Times. “Civil marriage does not exist in the country, where the solemnization of marriage is entirely controlled by the state rabbinate, and homosexual unions are not in themselves recognized.” Vietnam: Couple marries on airplane flight A Vietnamese lesbian couple celebrated a Valentine’s Day wedding on a Vietjet flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Bangkok. Pink News notes, “Same-sex marriage is not legally recognized in…

2018: Wave Goodbye to Another Year in Religion

By Daniel Schultz

…g at the Southern Baptist Convention’s annual meeting, albeit it with some reservations on the part of the audience. President Trump, never one to be overshadowed, prayed next to Paula White at a closed-door White House dinner with evangelical leaders and huffed and puffed about challenges to his authority coming in the fall elections. Turns out he was right about the impending disaster at the polls, just not the violent overthrow part. Ah, well….

The Story of a Post-Holocaust Group Seeking Revenge Against Nazis is Part of the Story of Israel Itself

By Shane Burley

…poison the water supply of a major German city, hopefully reaching a death toll of six million, while Plan B was to kill only acutely guilty SS soldiers, numbering in the thousands. As Kovner met with Yishuv leaders it was clear that while there may have been sympathy with Plan A, only Plan B would receive the support of even the angriest of Palestine’s Jewish community. Plan B’s support came from leadership of the Haganah, the fighting force that…